Facebook hunting photos lead to wildlife charges for New Carlisle men

A New Carlisle man faces multiple criminal charges for wildlife violations after allegedly posting pictures on Facebook of deer he shot but never tagged during gun season last year, according to court records.

Forrest W. Parrott, 23, of 10331 Marquart Road, is expected to appear in court at 11 a.m. today. Parrott faces five counts of state ownership of and title to wild animals — prohibited activities, court records say.

Stewart N. Parrott, 21, same address, also faces two criminal counts of state ownership of and title to wild animals — prohibited activities, court records say, and is expected to appear in court on Jan. 22.

On Dec. 19, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources received an online tip that accused Forrest Parrott of allegedly posting pictures on Facebook of shooting multiple deer during gun season that were untagged. The tip said the deer were allegedly located in a barn and that Parrott had allegedly bragged about doing this in the past.

On Dec. 22, an ODNR officer allegedly saw a picture of Forrest Parrot standing next to a deer on Dec. 17. He also allegedly saw a photo of Forrest Parrott standing next to a deer he allegedly shot on Nov. 30 with the comment, “Everything dies during gun week,” according to court records. According to the Division of Wildlife’s database, Forrest Parrott had only reported harvesting a deer on Dec. 17 in Clark County.

After being questioned by an officer, both Forrest Parrott and Stewart Parrott allegedly admitted to harvesting two antlered deer during gun season but failing to tag their first deer, court records say.

The Ohio Revised Code says only one antlered deer can be harvested annually, “regardless of method of take or location.”